Method and system for integrated real and virtual game play for multiple remotely-controlled aircraft

ABSTRACT

Gaming systems and methods facilitate integrated real and virtual game play among multiple remote control objects, including multiple remotely-controlled aircraft, within a locally-defined, three-dimensional game space using gaming “apps” (i.e., applications) running on one or more mobile devices, such as tablets or smartphones, and/or a central game controller. The systems and methods permit game play among multiple remotely-controlled aircraft within the game space. Game play may be controlled and/or displayed by a gaming app running on one or more mobile devices and/or a central game controller that keeps track of multiple craft locations and orientations with reference to a locally-defined coordinate frame of reference associated with the game space. The gaming app running on one or more mobile devices and/or central game controller also determine game play among the various craft and objects within the game space in accordance with the rules and parameters for the game being played.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority benefit, under 35 U.S.C. § 119(e), ofU.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/259,022 filed Nov. 23, 2015by Brad D. Pedersen et al., titled “Method and system for integratedreal and virtual game play for multiple remotely-controlled aircraft,”which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The invention relates generally to the fields of heavier-than-airaeronautical vehicles that are sustained in air by the force of a fluidsuch as air and remote control game play. More particularly, the presentinvention relates to three-dimensional game play among multiple remotecontrol objects, including multiple remotely-controlled aircraft.

BACKGROUND

Remotely-controlled aircraft are becoming increasingly more popular andsophisticated. While larger remotely-controlled aircraft such asmilitary and civilian drones have been in use for only the last twodecades, smaller remotely-controlled flying craft built and flown byhobbyists have been around for much longer. Generally,remotely-controlled aircraft are either fixed wing, like a plane, orhovering, like a helicopter or quadcopter.

Game play among remote control objects traditionally involved racing ordriving games for remote control model cars or boats. The game playerseach have a remote controller that communicates with a remote controlmodel craft using relatively simple control commands (e.g., turnleft/right, go faster/slower, go forward/backward). Control of the craftduring game play was originally based on the player's visual observationof the craft in a two-dimensional game space (e.g., a surface or areasuch as a track, a terrain, a pond, or a pool). The addition of a cameraand display screen augmented the remote control game play to provide avirtual game play option. Examples of these two-dimensional remotecontrol game play systems that included virtual game play capabilitiesinclude U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,293,798, 6,752,720, 7,704,119, and 8,216,036,and U.S. Pub. Nos. 2006/0223637 and 2009/0005167. An example of atwo-dimensional remote control game play systems with video displays oneach remote controller for controlling tanks that fired infrared orlaser offensive signals from tanks that can be tracked by pressuresensors arrayed under a two-dimensional play space mat is shown in U.S.Pat. No. 7,704,119. A more recent version of this kind oftwo-dimensional remote control tank battle game in which the controllerscan be implemented using a mobile device such as a tablet or smartphoneis shown in U.S. Pub. No. 2013/0190090. Additional improvements toremote control model car gaming systems have added sensor and imagingfeatures to enhance the control of a remote control vehicle and maintainparity between real and virtual representations of physical gamingcomponents in a generally two-dimensional game space, as shown, forexample, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,353,737, 8,845,385, and 8,882,560.

Other forms of real and virtual generally two-dimensional game space andgame play have been developed. One segment of these gaming arrangementshas focused on what is referred to as the “Toys to Life” market.Examples of these integrated real and virtual gaming arrangements usinga game board and/or objects with radio-frequency identification (RFID)tags are shown, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,475,275, 8,753,195, and8,821,820. Another segment of these real and virtual gaming arrangementshas focused on real-world players with virtual games that use thereal-world locations of the players, as shown, for example, in U.S. Pat.No. 9,033,803 and U.S. Pub. Nos. 2003/0177187, 2007/0190494, and2008/0146338.

More recently, remote control game play has been expanded to incorporateremotely-controlled aircraft into the game play. In order to supportremote control game play in a three-dimensional game space withremotely-controlled aircraft, as well as other vehicles, devices andaccessories used as part of game play, more sophisticated controlsystems are required than those developed for two-dimensional game spaceand game play arrangements.

The presentation of images associated with real objects and craft from athree-dimensional environment on a player's tablet or smartphone is onechallenge facing the development of three-dimensional game play amongmultiple remotely-controlled aircraft. U.S. Pub. No. 2014/0051513describes a system for detecting, controlling, and displaying objectsusing a mobile device, such as a tablet or smartphone. The system uses acamera in the mobile device and tracks the objects in such a way as todisplay a virtual representation of the object as a different image on adisplay screen of the mobile device. U.S. Pub. No. 2010/0009735describes a video game system for a remotely-controlled aircraft inwhich a craft includes an inertial sensing unit that senses the attitudeof the craft and the displayed images on a mobile device is adjusted inresponse. U.S. Pub. No. 2010/00178966 describes a video game system fora remotely-controlled aircraft in which a mobile device uses videoanalysis of on-board camera images and flashing LED lights on the craftto determine whether or not there has been a hit in the virtual videogame. U.S. Pat. No. 8,818,083 describes a similar system that usesstrips of different colors mounted on a remotely controlled droneequipped with forward-facing cameras to identify and confirm whethershots made in virtual game environment are hitting or missing theirtarget. These systems, however, determine orientation, and not distance,relative to the other craft, and not relative to a shared localcoordinate system. Challenges remain on how to make the user interfaceand gaming experience fun and engaging for three-dimensional game playamong multiple remotely-controlled aircraft.

Another significant challenge is the problem of locating and trackingwith proper resolution the positions and orientations of multiple craftand objects within a three-dimensional gaming space. U.S. Pub. No.2009/0284553 was one of the first to recognize the need for dynamicposition sensing of a remotely-controlled aircraft in athree-dimensional gaming space.

Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) transceivers can track craft andobjects outdoors, however, these kinds of GPS solutions may not providethe proper resolution of position and orientation required forthree-dimensional gaming among multiple craft and players. In addition,solutions relying on GPS will not work if the three-dimensional gamingspace is indoors. Indoor tracking of drones and other flying craft hasbeen accomplished by external motion capture and imaging analysissystems, for example, to continuously track the position of the craftwithin a predefined indoor space. Generally, this kind of externallocalization system requires sophisticated equipment with multiplecameras, computer systems and advanced software programs.

Simultaneous location and mapping (SLAM) techniques based on on-boardvideo and sensor information are used to allow individual automatedcraft or robots to acquire an understanding of a surrounding andnavigate in response without the need for an external localizationsystem to track and communicate positional information to the craft ofrobot. While SLAM techniques are particularly useful for autonomouscontrol of swarms of drones or robots, these techniques are generallyless relevant to real and virtual gaming environments involving playerremote control of a craft.

U.S. Pub. No. 2009/0284553 recognized the need for dynamic positionsensing of a remotely-controlled aircraft in a three-dimensional gamingspace, and described the use of GPS and an inertial unit and on-boardcameras in the craft to determine actual Earth coordinates and a localframe of reference. Together with GPS and dead reckoning based on astarting point of the craft, positional information of the aircraft wasdetermined and then used to download corresponding aerial images todefine a game space in which a virtual game may be played.Unfortunately, the techniques presented in this published applicationfor obtaining the positional information information and the appropriateresolution of that information were not well suited for smaller scale orindoor three-dimensional game play, and there was no ability tocoordinate the positional information to determine the positions andactions of other remotely-controlled craft within the three-dimensionalgame space.

U.S. Pat. Nos. 9,004,973 and 9,011,250 describe a three-dimensionalremotely-controlled aircraft gaming system that can selectively assigndifferent players to different teams, and in various embodiments usestwo different communication systems, such as infrared (IR) and radiofrequency (RF) communications, to implement remote control of theaircraft by the players and coordinate the three-dimensional game playsystem.

All patents and patent application publications referenced in thisentire specification are incorporated herein by reference.

In spite of these advances, there remains a need for improvements tosystems and methods that can enhance three-dimensional game play amongmultiple remote control objects, including multiple remotely-controlledaircraft.

SUMMARY

Systems and methods are described for facilitating integrated real andvirtual game play among multiple remote control objects, includingmultiple remotely-controlled aircraft, within a locally-defined,three-dimensional game space using gaming “apps” (i.e., applications)running on one or more mobile devices, such as tablets or smartphones,and/or a central game controller. The systems and methods permit gameplay among multiple remotely-controlled aircraft within the game space.

In various embodiments, a player operates a remotely-controlled aircraftin the game space using a uniquely paired remote controller that may bea handheld controller or an app running on a mobile device. Game playmay be controlled and/or displayed by a gaming app running on one ormore mobile devices and/or a central game controller that keeps track ofmultiple craft locations and orientations with reference to alocally-defined coordinate frame of reference associated with the gamespace. The gaming app running on one or more mobile devices and/orcentral game controller also determine game play among the various craftand objects within the game space in accordance with the rules andparameters for the game being played.

In accordance with various embodiments, a variety of games may besupported by the systems and methods described, such as those withfirst-person shooter, racing, obstacles, challenge, and/or buildingactions. At least some of the gaming actions may occur within thethree-dimensional real world game space and are associated with aremotely-controlled aircraft, whereas others may be represented in thevirtual gaming environment running on the mobile device. In someembodiments, the gaming app is configured to permit players to earnand/or purchase various enhancements or options within a given game thatmay affect the parameters controlling game play, such as duration, cost,strength, or distance of various offensive and defensive actions.

In some embodiments, the positional information associated withremotely-controlled aircraft operating within the game space aredetermined with reference to at least three fiducial elements that areused by the gaming app and/or game controller to locally define thethree-dimensional game space, and by the craft to determine data relatedto positional and attitude information within a frame of referencedefined by the game space that is communicated to the gaming app and/orgame controller.

In various embodiments, a combination of passive and active fiducialelements to define a relatively smaller game space in which sensorinformation from the craft can be integrated with external informationabout this game space. This integrated information is provided to agaming controller preferably integrated with a mobile device gaming appwhich manages game play and communicates among the various players andcraft. The use of a gaming app on a mobile device as the main interfaceand controller for the 3-D game play opens up the potential for in-apppurchases of enhancements and options that can provide an ongoingrevenue stream over the life of the product.

The above summary is not intended to describe each illustratedembodiment or every implementation of the subject matter hereof. Thefigures and the detailed description that follow more particularlyexemplify various embodiments.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a three-dimensional gaming system formultiple remotely-controlled aircraft, according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a diagram of a portion of gaming system for multipleremotely-controlled aircraft utilizing a computing device running anapplication, according to an embodiment.

FIG. 3A is a diagram of a real-world interaction of multipleremotely-controlled aircraft within a game space, according to anembodiment

FIG. 3B is an illustration of an application that integrates thereal-world interaction of multiple remotely-controlled aircraft of FIG.3A with a virtual world of the application, according to an embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a diagram of a portion of a gaming system for multipleremotely-controlled aircraft within a game space, according to anembodiment.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a game space recognition subsystem formultiple remotely-controlled aircraft, according to an embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of a locating engine 601 that determinesposition, orientation and location information of multipleremotely-controlled aircraft, according to an embodiment.

FIGS. 7A and 7B, together, are an exemplary set 701 of prediction andupdate algorithms and formulas that are used in some embodiments oflocating engine 601.

FIG. 8 is a diagram of the fiducial marker mat 502 deployed in a gamespace, according to an embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a diagram of a plurality of fiducial marker ribbon strips fora game space for a gaming system for multiple remotely-controlledaircraft, according to an embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a diagram of a fiducial beacon grid for a game space for agaming system for multiple remotely-controlled aircraft, according to anembodiment.

FIG. 11 is a diagram of a game space space having an out-of-bounds areafor a gaming system for multiple remotely-controlled aircraft, accordingto an embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart of a method of integrating three-dimensional gameplay among remotely-controlled craft on a gaming application for amobile device, according to an embodiment.

While various embodiments are amenable to various modifications andalternative forms, specifics thereof have been shown by way of examplein the drawings and will be described in detail. It should beunderstood, however, that the intention is not to limit the claimedinventions to the particular embodiments described. On the contrary, theintention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternativesfalling within the spirit and scope of the subject matter as defined bythe claims.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Referring to FIG. 1, a block diagram of a gaming system 100 for multipleremotely-controlled aircraft is depicted. Gaming system 100 generallycomprises a first craft 102 a configured to be controlled by a firstcontroller 104 a, a second craft 102 b configured to be controlled by asecond controller 104 b, a mobile device 106 running a gaming app, and agame space recognition subsystem 108. Generally, gaming system 100allows for enhanced game play between first craft 102 a and second craft102 b using integrated virtual components on mobile device 106.

In some embodiments, craft 102 is a hovering flying craft adapted to beselectively and unique pair with and controlled by a handheld remotecontroller, such as controller 104. In one embodiment, a hovering flyingcraft 102 has a frame assembly that includes a plurality of armsextending from a center body with an electric motor and correspondingpropeller on each arm. The frame assembly carries a battery togetherwith electronics, sensors and communication components. These mayinclude one or more gyroscopes, accelerometers, magnetometers,altimeters, ultrasounds sensors, downward facing camera and/or opticalflow sensors, forward-facing camera and/or LIDAR sensors, processors,and/or transceivers.

In some embodiments, controller 104 is a single-handed controller to beused by a user for controlling a craft 102. In one embodiment,controller 104 has a controller body configured to be handheld andhaving an angled shape and including a flat top surface for orientationreference of the controller, a trigger mechanism projecting from thecontroller body adapted to interface with a finger of the user, a tophat projecting from the flat top surface adapted to interface with athumb of the user, and a body, processor, electronics and communicationcomponents housed within the controller body.

For a more detailed description of aspects of one embodiment of craft102 and controller 104, reference is made to U.S. Pat. No. 9,004,973, byJohn Paul Condon et al., titled “Remote-Control Flying Copter andMethod,” the detailed specification and figures of which are herebyincorporated by reference.

While embodiments of the present invention are described with respect toa smaller, hovering remotely-controlled aircraft in wirelesscommunication with a paired wireless controller configured forsingle-handed tilt-control operations, it will be understood that otherembodiments of the communications system for game play in accordancewith the present invention may include other types ofremotely-controlled flying craft, such as planes or helicopters, orother non-flying remote-control craft, such as cars or boats, and mayalso include other types of remote controllers, such as a conventionaldual joystick controller or a tilt-control based on an “app” (i.e., anapplication) running on a mobile device or a software programmingrunning on a laptop or desktop computer, as will be described.

In an embodiment, second craft 102 b is substantially similar to firstcraft 102 a. In such embodiments, second controller 104 is substantiallysimilar to first controller 104 a and is configured to control secondcraft 102 b. In other embodiments, second craft 102 b comprises a flyingcraft that is a different type than first craft 102 a. In embodiments,multiple types of flying craft can be used in the same game space.

Device 106 is configured to execute a gaming application. In anembodiment, device 106 comprises a smartphone, tablet, laptop computer,desktop computer, or other computing device. For example, device 106 cancomprise a display, memory, and a processor configured to present agaming application on the display. In embodiments, device 106 comprisescommunication or network interface modules for interfacing to othercomponents of gaming system 100. Typically, device 106 is mobile toallow players to set up a game space in nearly any environment or space,such as an outdoor space like a field or parking lot, or an indoor spacelike a gymnasium or open room. However, device 106 can also bestationary instead of mobile, such that players can bring their craft toa preexisting game space defined proximate the device 106.

In some embodiments, device 106 can further be configured by the playerto selectively control one of craft 102 a or craft 102 b such that thefunctionality of either controller 104 a or controller 104 b isintegrated into device 106. In other embodiments, device 106 can beintegrated with game space recognition subsystem 108 such that thefunctionality of device 106 and game space recognition subsystem 108 areintegrated into one device.

Game space recognition subsystem 108 is configured to determine arelative position and orientation of first craft 102 a and second craft102 b within a three-dimensional game space. In an embodiment, gamespace recognition subsystem 108 comprises a plurality of fiducialelements, a mapping engine, and a locating engine, as will be described.

Referring to FIG. 2, a diagram of a portion of gaming system 100 formultiple remotely-controlled aircraft utilizing computing device 106 isdepicted, according to an embodiment. As shown, gaming system 100partially comprises first craft 102 a, first controller 104 a, anddevice 106.

Device 106 comprises computing hardware and software configured toexecute application 110. In other embodiments, device 106 furthercomprises computing hardware and software to store application 110.Application 110 generally comprises software configured for game-basedinteraction with first craft 102 a, including display of first craft 102a relative to the executed game. Application 110 can include a relativelocation in a two-dimensional application display space thatapproximates the location of first craft 102 a in the three-dimensionalgame space space. For example, if first craft 102 a is in the northeastcorner of the game space space, application 110 can depict first craft102 a as being in the upper right corner of the application displayspace. Likewise, if first craft 102 a is in the southwest corner of thegame space space, application 110 can depict first craft 102 a as beingin the lower left corner of the application display space.

Application 110 can further include gaming elements relative to the gamebeing played, such as heath zones, danger zones, or safe or “hide-able”zones. For example, referring to FIG. 3A, a diagram of real-worldinteraction of multiple remotely-controlled aircraft within a game space200 is depicted, according to an embodiment. As depicted, first craft102 a and second craft 102 b are positioned or hovering within gamespace 200. Game space 200 comprises a three-dimensional gaming area inwhich first craft 102 a and second craft 102 b can move around in X, Y,and Z axes. In an embodiment, first craft 102 a and second craft 102 bare controlled within game space 200 by controller 104 a and secondcontroller 104 b, respectively (not shown). In embodiments of game play,leaving the game space 200 may be considered entering a restricted orhidden zone, and may be done with or without a penalty. In otherembodiments, sensors are positioned within game space 200 to restrictthe ability of first craft 102 a and second craft 102 b to leave gamespace 200. For example, a craft touching one of the “sides” of gamespace 200 might engage a sensor configured to transmit a command to thecraft that artificially weakens or disables the flying ability of thecraft.

FIG. 3B is an illustration of an application such as application 110that integrates the real-world interaction of first craft 102 a andsecond craft 102 b of FIG. 3A with a virtual world of application 110,according to an embodiment. For example, application 110 can visuallydepict first craft 102 a and second craft 102 b within the applicationdisplay. Further, application 110 can include other visual elements thatfirst craft 102 a and second craft 102 b can interface with withinapplication 110. For example, as depicted, first craft 102 a ispositioned proximate a health zone 202. A user might recognize a healthzone 202 within the virtual environment of application 110 andphysically command first craft 102 a near health zone 202. In anembodiment, within the game play of application 110, first craft 102 acould gain a relative advantage to the other craft not positionedproximate health zone 202. In embodiments, various display communicationsuch as text 204 can visually indicate interaction with health zone 202.

In another example, second craft 102 b can be positioned proximate ahiding zone, such as virtual mountains 206. In such embodiments, secondcraft 102 b can be “protected” within the game play from, for example,cannon 208. While proximate mountains 206 within application 110 asinterpreted within game space 200, second craft 102 b can be safe fromthe “shots” fired by cannon 208. In other embodiments, while positionedproximate mountains 206 within application 110, second craft 102 b canbe safe from any “shots” fired by first craft 102 a. In embodiments,physical markers or beacons representing the various virtual elementswithin application 110 can be placed on game space 200. One skilled inthe art will readily appreciate that interplay between first craft 102 aand second craft 102 b on physical game space 200 as represented withinapplication 110 is essentially unlimited. Any number of games or gamecomponents can be implemented in both game space 200 and on application110.

Referring again to FIG. 2, first craft 102 a is in wirelesscommunication with first controller 104 a over craft control channel112. The wireless communication over craft control channel 110 can be byany suitable protocol, such as infrared (IR), Bluetooth, radio frequency(RF), or any similar protocol. Additionally, first craft 102 a is inwireless communication with device 106 over gaming channel 114. Wirelesscommunication over craft gaming channel 114 can likewise be by anysuitable protocol, such as infrared (IR), Bluetooth, radio frequency(RF), or any similar protocol. In an embodiment, device 106 comprisesboth controller 104 a functionality and application 110 functionality.For ease of explanation, second craft 102 b and second controller 104 bare not depicted, but may include similar interfaces and communicationschemes as first craft 102 a and first controller 104 a as describedherein, or may include interfaces as well communication schemes that,while not similar, are compatible with at least the other communicationschemes used by other craft and objects in the gaming space.

Referring to FIG. 4, a diagram of a portion of a gaming system formultiple remotely-controlled aircraft within a game space is depicted,according to an embodiment. Game space 300 comprises a three-dimensionalgaming area similar to game space 200 described with respect to FIG. 3A.In an embodiment, first craft 102 a and second craft 102 b arecontrolled within game space 200 by controller 104 a and secondcontroller 104 b (not shown), respectively.

A plurality of fiducial beacons 302, 402, 502 are provided to definegame space 300. In various configurations and embodiments, thesefiducial beacons 302 (active), 402 (passive), 502 (smart) are used bygame space recognition subsystem 108 to locate each of the craft withingame space 300, as will be described. It will be understood that thegame space 300 is bounded and defined at least in part by the fiducialbeacons such that the game space 300 represents a finite space. Althoughthe game space 300 may be either indoors or outdoors as will bedescribed, the overall volume of the game space 300 is limited and invarious embodiments may correspond to the number, size and range of theremotely-controlled aircraft. For smaller aircraft and a smaller numberof such aircraft in play, the overall volume of game space 300 may besuitable for indoor play in an area, for example, that could be 20 feetwide by 30 feet long by 10 feet high. With a larger number of craft, anoverall volume of game space 300 may correspond to a typical size of abasketball court (90 feet by 50 feet) together with a height of 20 feet.For outdoor configurations, the overall game volume may be somewhatlarger and more irregular to accommodate a variety of terrain andnatural obstacles and features, although the game volume is typicallyconstrained in various embodiments to both line of sight distances anddistances over which the remotely-controlled aircraft are stillreasonably visible to players positioned outside the game space 300.

Gaming controller station 304 comprises computing hardware and softwareconfigured to execute a gaming application. In other embodiments, gamecontrol device 304 further comprises computing hardware and software tostore the gaming application. In an embodiment, game control device 304is substantially similar to device 106 of FIG. 2. As depicted, gamingcontroller station 304 is communicatively coupled to first craft 102 aand second craft 102 b. For ease of illustration, only the linkingbetween first craft 102 a and gaming controller station 304 is shown inFIG. 4, but one skilled in the art will readily understand that secondcraft 102 b is similarly communicatively coupled to gaming controllerstation 304.

In another embodiment, gaming controller station 304 further comprisescomputing hardware and software configured to execute game spacerecognition subsystem 108. In an embodiment, gaming controller station304 can be communicatively coupled to active fiducial beacons 302 orsmart fiducial beacons 502 to transmit and receive location information.

Referring to FIG. 5, a block diagram of game space recognition subsystem108 is depicted, according to an embodiment. Game space recognitionsubsystem 108 generally comprises a plurality of fiducial elements 402,a mapping engine 404, and a locating engine 406. It will be appreciatedthat the finite volume of game space 300 as described above contributesto the complexity of the determinations that must be performed by gamespace recognition subsystem 108. In various embodiments, particularlythose that utilize only passive fiducial beacons 402, the game spacevolume 300 is smaller to simplify the requirements that game spacerecognition system 108 and mapping engine 404 must fulfill to adequatelydefine the game space volume in which locating engine 406 caneffectively identify and locate each relevant craft in the game space300.

The subsystem includes various engines, each of which is constructed,programmed, configured, or otherwise adapted, to autonomously carry outa function or set of functions. The term engine as used herein isdefined as a real-world device, component, or arrangement of componentsimplemented using hardware, such as by an application specificintegrated circuit (ASIC) or field-programmable gate array (FPGA), forexample, or as a combination of hardware and software, such as by amicroprocessor system and a set of program instructions that adapt theengine to implement the particular functionality, which (while beingexecuted) transform the microprocessor system into a special-purposedevice. An engine can also be implemented as a combination of the two,with certain functions facilitated by hardware alone, and otherfunctions facilitated by a combination of hardware and software. Incertain implementations, at least a portion, and in some cases, all, ofan engine can be executed on the processor(s) of one or more computingplatforms that are made up of hardware (e.g., one or more processors,data storage devices such as memory or drive storage, input/outputfacilities such as network interface devices, video devices, keyboard,mouse or touchscreen devices, etc.) that execute an operating system,system programs, and application programs, while also implementing theengine using multitasking, multithreading, distributed (e.g., cluster,peer-peer, cloud, etc.) processing where appropriate, or other suchtechniques. Accordingly, each engine can be realized in a variety ofphysically realizable configurations, and should generally not belimited to any particular implementation exemplified herein, unless suchlimitations are expressly called out. In addition, an engine can itselfbe composed of more than one sub-engines, each of which can be regardedas an engine in its own right. Moreover, in the embodiments describedherein, each of the various engines corresponds to a defined autonomousfunctionality; however, it should be understood that in othercontemplated embodiments, each functionality can be distributed to morethan one engine. Likewise, in other contemplated embodiments, multipledefined functionalities may be implemented by a single engine thatperforms those multiple functions, possibly alongside other functions,or distributed differently among a set of engines than specificallyillustrated in the examples herein.

Fiducial elements 302, 402, 502 may each comprise a beacon, marker,and/or other suitable component configured for mapping and locating eachof the craft within a game space. In an embodiment, fiducial elements402 are passive and comprise a unique identifier readable by othercomponents of game space recognition subsystem 108. For example,fiducial elements 402 can comprise a “fiducial strip” having a pluralityof unique markings along the strip. In other embodiments, fiducialelements 402 can include individual cards or placards having uniquemarkings. A plurality of low-cost, printed fiducials can be used forentry-level game play.

In another embodiment, fiducial elements 302 are active and each includea transceiver configured for IR, RF-pulse, magnetometer, or ultrasoundtransmission. In embodiments, other active locating technology can alsobe utilized. In embodiments, active fiducial elements 302 can include“smart” fiducials 502 having a field-of-view camera. Fiducial elementscan further be a combination of active elements 302, passive fiducialelements 402 and/or smart fiducial elements 502. In further embodiments,fiducial elements 302, 402, 502 may includes special fiducials that alsorepresent game pieces like capture points, health restoring, defensiveturrets, etc.

In embodiments, fiducial elements 302, 402, 502 can be spaced evenly orunevenly along the horizontal (X-axis) surface of the game space. Inembodiments, fiducial elements 302, 402, 502 can be spaced evenly orunevenly along the vertical dimension (Z-axis) of the game space. Forexample, fiducial elements 302, 402, 502 can be spaced along a verticalpole placed within the game space. In most embodiments, verticalplacement of fiducial elements 302, 402, 502 is not needed. In suchembodiments, an altitude sensor of the craft provides relevant Z-axisdata. Relative placement of fiducial elements 302, 402, 502 is describedin additional detail with respect to FIGS. 8-10.

According to an embodiment, the maximum spacing between fiducials is atrade-off between minimum craft height and camera field of view. Aftercalibration and assuming the height above the ground is known, game playcan be implemented with a craft identifying only a single fiducialelement continuously. In embodiments, the size of fiducial elements canbe a function of the resolution of the camera, its field of view, or therequired number of pixels on a particular fiducial element. Accordingly,the less information-dense the fiducial elements are, the smaller theimplementation size can be.

Mapping engine 404 is configured to map the relative placement of theplurality of fiducial elements 302, 402, 502. In embodiments, mappingengine 404 is configured to map, with high certainty, the relativedistance between each of the fiducial elements 302, 402, 502. Any errorin fiducial positions can result in error in the estimated position of acraft. One skilled in the art will appreciate that smaller,environmentally-controlled game spaces require fewer fiducial elements.However, outdoor locations and larger areas require a larger quantity offiducial elements or additional processing to determine the relativepositions of fiducial elements 302, 402, 502. In embodiments, mappingengine 404 is configured to perform a calibration sequence of fiducialelements 302, 502.

In an embodiment of fiducial elements 302, 502 comprising activeelements and/or smart elements, mapping engine 404 is configured toreceive relative locations of fiducial elements 302, 502 as discoveredby the respective elements. For example, wherein active fiducialelements 302, 502 comprise transmitting beacons, an IR, RF, orultrasound pulse can be emitted by one or more of fiducial elements 302,502 and received by the other fiducial elements 302, 502 and/or gamecontroller station 304. The time of the pulse from transmission toreception by another fiducial element 302, 502 (i.e., time of flightanalysis) can thus be utilized to determine a relative position betweenfiducial elements 302, 502. This data can be transmitted to mappingengine 404, for example, through game controller station 304 in FIG. 4.Mapping engine 404 can thus prepare or otherwise learn a relative map ofthe position of active fiducial elements 302, 502.

In an embodiment of fiducial elements 402 comprising passive elements,mapping engine 404 is configured to interface with image data toidentify and prepare or otherwise learn a relative map of the positionof fiducial elements. In one example, a calibration sequence includesobtaining or taking an image including fiducial elements 402 using amobile device, such as device 106 or game controller station 304. Theimage can be transmitted or otherwise sent to mapping engine 404.Mapping engine 404 is configured to parse or otherwise determine theunique identifiers of fiducial elements 402 in order to prepare orotherwise learn a relative map of the position of fiducial elements 402.In embodiments, multiple images can be taken of the game space. Forexample, in a large game space, the resolution required to determineeach unique fiducial element 402 may not fit in a single picture.Multiple “zoomed-in” pictures can be taken and stitched together usingany number of photo composition techniques in order to generate a fullimage comprising all of the fiducial elements 402.

In another embodiment, as described above, craft can include one or moredownward-facing cameras. In embodiments, such a craft is referred tohere as a mapping craft during a calibration sequence that can includeutilizing the mapping craft to initiate a mapping or reconnaissanceflight to identify fiducial elements 302, 402, 502. For example, mappingcraft can be automated to fly over the game space and visually capturefiducial elements 302, 402, 502 using the downward-facing camera. Inanother embodiment, a user can manual fly over the game space tovisually capture fiducial elements 302, 402, 502 using thedownward-facing camera.

According to an embodiment, during calibration, at least two andpreferably three individual fiducial elements can be identifiedsimultaneously. Using an estimated craft height (for example, from analtimeter) and the angle between the fiducials, a mapping can be createdbetween all fiducial elements. In another embodiment, if mapping engine404 can identify or otherwise know the size of the fiducial elementsthemselves, an altimeter is not necessary.

In another embodiment, a joint calibration of fiducial elements 302, 402can includes using a “smart” fiducial 502. For example, each smartfiducial 502 can include a 180 degree field-of-view camera to “see”other fiducial elements. In an embodiment, a map can be created with atleast two smart fiducials 502 that can independently view each otherfiducial. In further embodiments, one or more smart fiducials 502 can becombined with mapping craft as described above, and/or may be combinedwith time of flight position calibration of fiducials 302 as describedabove.

As mentioned, fiducial elements can be combined among passive elements402 and active elements 302. For example, four “corner” fiducialelements 302 and two “encoded” strings of passive elements 402 placed tocrisscross between opposite corners can be utilized. In a furtherembodiment, encoded strings can be placed to crisscross between adjacentcorners. According to an embodiment, for example, if the corners of thegame space are no more than 30 feet apart and the craft is three feetabove the ground, a downward facing camera on the craft can locate atleast one string. Corner elements can be passive or active, as describedherein.

Locating engine 406 is configured to locate the position of craft withinthe game space using the data from mapping engine 404 and optionally,craft data. For example, IR, RF, or ultrasound beacons can emit a pulsethat is received or returned by a particular craft. A triangulationcalculation or measurement can be utilized in order to determine thedistances and relative positions of craft over the game space using thepulse data. In an embodiment, at least two beacons are utilized incombination with a sensor reading from the craft in order to triangulatethe relative position of the craft on the game space. In anotherembodiment, at least three beacons are utilized to determine therelative position of the craft on the game space. More than two beaconscan be combined to improve accuracy, but most game play does not requireit.

In other embodiments of craft having a downward facing camera, arelative location can be determined by the data returned from thecamera. Relative craft position can be determined based on the map ofthe game space created during calibration as implemented by mappingengine 404.

In an embodiment, the craft can be launched within the game space at apredetermined or known location relative to the fiducial elements. Thisallows embodiments of locating engine 406 to initiate with another datapoint for locating the craft within the game space. See, for example,FIG. 10.

Referring to FIG. 5, a block diagram of one embodiment of locatingengine 406 is described that utilizes both sensors and/or informationobtained from onboard the craft 102, and sensors and/or information fromexternal references and/or sources that are combined in a data fusionprocess to provide the necessary location information consisting of bothpositional information of a relative position in the game space 300 andorientation information of the craft at the given point indicated by thepositional information.

With respect to the onboard sensors in this embodiment, duringinitialization, an initial pitch and roll estimate of craft 102 isestimated using the accelerometers to observe an orientation of craft102 relative to gravity with the assumption that no other accelerationsare present. The craft heading or yaw can be initialized using themagnetometer or may simply be set to zero. As typically performed byAttitude Heading and Reference Systems (AHRS), data from the gyroscopeis continually integrated at each time step to provide a continualestimate of the attitude of craft 102. Noise present in the gyroscopesignal will accumulate over time resulting in an increasing error andmay be corrected and or normalized using information from other sensors.The accelerometer data is used to provide measure the orientation of thecraft 102 relative to gravity. As the accelerometers measure both theeffect of gravity as well as linear accelerations, linear accelerationswill corrupt this measurement. If an estimate is available, bodyaccelerations can be removed. Additionally, if an estimate of the craftorientation is available, it can be used to remove the gravity vectorfrom the signal and the resulting body acceleration measurements can beused to aid the position tracking estimate.

In some embodiments, a magnetometer on the craft 102 can be used tomeasure the orientation of the craft relative to earth's magnetic fieldvector. Using both the magnetic and gravitational vectors provide anabsolute reference frame to estimate a three-dimensional orientation ofthe craft.

In some embodiments, a dynamic measurement of a relative altitude ofcraft 104 may be obtained. In various embodiments, a barometer can beused to measure the air pressure of the craft. As the craft rises inaltitude, the air pressure drops. Using the relationship betweenaltitude and barometric pressure, an estimate of the craft's altituderelative to sea level can be made. Typically, the barometric pressure ismeasured while the craft is on the ground to determine the ground'saltitude above sea level and allows for a rough estimate of the craft'sheight above ground. In other embodiments, an ultrasonic range findercan be used to measure the craft's height above ground and/or walls bytransmitting and receiving sound pulses. Typically, the ultrasonicsensor is fixed to the craft, so the current attitude estimate for craft104 is used to correct the estimate. Similar to an ultrasonic rangefinder, in some embodiments a time of flight sensor can use LED or laserlight to transmit a coded signal. The reflection of the light isreceived and correlated to the transmitted signal to determine the timeof flight of the signal and thereby the distance to the reflectingtarget.

In some embodiments, a downward-facing camera or an optical flow sensormay be used to monitor the motion of a scene that can include one ormore fiducials, and this information can be analyzed and processed alongwith knowledge of an orientation and a distance to a fiducial, forexample, which can be used to calculate a relative position and velocitybetween the craft and the fiducial and/or another know object in thescene within the gaming space (i.e., floor or walls).

In other embodiments, an onboard camera on the craft can be used toimage visual targets such as fiducials on the ground, the floor, or evenother remotely-controlled aircraft of other remote control object withinthe game space. A vector can be determined for each visual targetidentified that connects a focal point of the camera with the target asmeasured by a pixel location of the target. If the location of a giventarget is known in the local coordinate frame of the game space, theposition of the remotely-controlled aircraft within thethree-dimensional game space can be estimated using the intersection ofthese vectors. If the size of the targets is known, their imaged size inpixels and the camera's intrinsic properties also can be used toestimate the distance to the target.

In various embodiments, a commanded thrust output for the craft can beused along with a motion model of the craft to aid the tracking systemproviding estimates of its future orientation, acceleration, velocityand position.

With respect to the onboard sensors in various embodiments, a videocamera can be used with computer vision algorithms in one or more of thesmart fiducials 502 and/or the gaming controller to determine a locationof a craft in the field of view of the video camera along with itsrelative orientation. Using the pixel location of the identified craft,a vector from the camera in a known location within the gaming space tothe craft can be estimated. Additionally, if the physical size of thecraft and camera's intrinsic imaging properties are known, the distanceto the craft can also be estimated. Using multiple cameras, multiplevectors to each craft can be determined and their intersections used toestimate the three-dimensional position of the remotely-controlledaircraft within the gaming space.

In other embodiments, to aid in the computer vision tracking of thecraft by external references, the visual fiducial markers 402 may beused. These markers are designed to be easily seen and located in thefield of view of the external reference camera. By arranging thefiducials on the target in a known pattern, orientation and distancetracking can be improved using this information.

A time of flight camera or a LIDAR array sensor may also be used invarious embodiments of the external references to generate a distanceper pixel to the target. It illuminates the scene with a coded lightsignal and correlates the returns to determine the time of flight of thetransmitted signal. The time of flight camera or a LIDAR array sensorcan provide a superior distance measurement than just using the imagedcraft size. Examples of a LIDAR array sensor that may be small enoughand light enough to be suitable for use in some embodiments describedherein is shown in U.S. Publ. No. 2015/0293228, the contents of whichare hereby incorporated by reference.

In various embodiments, when the available sensor measurements andinformation from onboard and/or external references is obtained, thisinformation together with the corresponding mathematical modelsapplicable to such information, may be combined in a data fusion processto create estimates with lower error rates for determining the location,position and orientation than any single sensor. This estimate may alsobe propagated through time and continually updated as new sensormeasurements are made. In various embodiments, the data fusion processis accomplished by using an Extended Kalman Filter or its variants (i.e.Unscented Kalman Filter). In various embodiments, the data fusionprocess is performed by the locating engine 406.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of a locating engine 601 that determinesposition, orientation and location information of multipleremotely-controlled aircraft, according to an embodiment. In someembodiments, locating engine 601 is an implementation of locating engine406 described above.

FIGS. 7A and 7B, together, which are adapted from the Wikipedia internetwebsite entry for Kalman filter, depict an exemplary set 701 ofalgorithms and formulas that may be implemented, in some embodiments, bythe locating engine 601 to perform the data fusion process, both forinitial prediction and for subsequent update of the locationinformation.

Referring to FIG. 8, a diagram of a fiducial marker mat 502 for a gamespace 500 is depicted, according to an embodiment. As shown, game space500 comprises a three-dimensional space in which two or more craft canbe launched and fly in accordance with a particular game. Once fiducialmarker mat 502 is deployed onto game space 500, fiducial marker mat 502comprises a net of visual targets 504 evenly spaced at the respectiveintersections of the netting. In an embodiment, fiducial marker mat 502is unrolled on the playing surface “floor.” Each visual target 504comprises a unique identifier readable by an image-recognition device.Accordingly, the relative distance and angle of each of the uniquevisual targets 504 from other unique visual targets 504 can be easilydetermined. In other embodiments, visual targets 504 are not positionedat respective intersections of the netting, but are otherwise spacedalong the surface of fiducial marker mat 502. As shown in FIG. 8,fiducial marker mat 502 is stretched out on the floor of game space 500.

Referring to FIG. 9, a diagram of a plurality of fiducial marker ribbonstrips for a game space for a gaming system for multipleremotely-controlled aircraft is depicted, according to an embodiment. Asshown, game space 600 comprises a three-dimensional space in which twoor more craft can be launched and fly in accordance with a particulargame.

A plurality of two-dimensional 1-D ribbon strips are positioned in afiducial grid along the playing surface “floor.” For example, firststrip 602 and second strip 604 are positioned adjacent and parallel eachother, but spaced from each other along the floor. Likewise, third strip606 and fourth strip 608 are positioned adjacent and parallel eachother, but spaced from each other along the floor. Third strip 606 andfourth strip 608 are positioned orthogonal to first strip 602 and secondstrip 604 to form known angles with respect to each other.

Similar to visual targets 504, each of first strip 602, second strip604, third strip 606, and fourth strip 608 can comprise a plurality of aunique identifiers along the surface of the respective strip that arereadable by an image recognition device.

Referring to FIG. 10, a diagram of a fiducial beacon grid for a gamespace for a gaming system for multiple remotely-controlled aircraft isdepicted, according to an embodiment. As shown, game space 700 comprisesa three-dimensional space in which two or more craft can be launched andfly in accordance with a particular game.

A plurality of fiducial beacons are positioned in a fiducial grid alongthe playing surface “floor.” For example, fiducial beacon 702 andfiducial beacon 704 are positioned largely within the main area of theplaying surface floor. Fiducial beacon 706 is positioned proximate oneof the corners of game space 700. In an embodiment, a craft launch area708 is adjacent fiducial beacon 706. By positioning launch area 708 at asite known to fiducial beacon 706, locating the craft is easier withthis initial known data point.

Referring to FIG. 11, a diagram of a game space space having anout-of-bounds area for a gaming system for multiple remotely-controlledaircraft is depicted, according to an embodiment. As shown, game space800 comprises a three-dimensional space in which two or more craft canbe launched and fly in accordance with a particular game.

Game space 800 generally comprises a three-dimensional upperout-of-bounds area 802, a three-dimensional lower out-of-bounds area804, and a three-dimensional in-play area 806. In an embodiment, upperout-of-bounds area 802 comprises the three-dimensional area within gamespace 800 wherein the Z-axis is above 10 feet. In other embodimentsupper out-of-bounds area 802 comprises a three-dimensional area withingame space 800 greater or less than 10 feet.

In an embodiment, lower out-of-bounds area 804 comprises thethree-dimensional area within game space 800 wherein the Z-axis is under1 foot. In other embodiments lower out-of-bounds area 804 comprises athree-dimensional area within game space 800 greater or less than 1foot.

As described herein with respect to a craft touching one of the sides ofa game space, when a craft moves into an out of bounds location, such asupper out-of-bounds area 802 or lower out-of-bounds area 804, a commandcan be transmitted to the craft that artificially weakens or disablesthe flying ability of the craft. In other embodiments, other penaltiesor actions can be taken with respect to the craft or game play whencraft moves into these out of bounds locations.

In operation, referring to FIG. 12, a flowchart of a method 900 ofintegrating three-dimensional game play among multiple remote controlaeronautical vehicles on a gaming application for a mobile device isdepicted, according to an embodiment.

At 902, a game space is prepared. In embodiments, two or more users canphysically bring two or more remote control aeronautical vehicles to anarea in which the vehicles can be flown as a part of game play. Further,referring to FIG. 4, a gaming controller station to coordinate thepositional data of the craft can be set up adjacent the game space. Inembodiments, one or more mobile devices implementing a gamingapplication are powered on, initiated, or otherwise prepared for use.Finally, at least two fiducial elements are deployed on the horizontal(X-axis) surface of the game space. Fiducial elements can include bothactive and passive elements and can include various placements orconfigurations as described in, for example, FIGS. 5 and 8-10.

At 904, the fiducial elements are mapped. Referring to mapping engine404, a map of fiducial elements on the game space is generated. Inembodiments, both active and passive fiducial elements can be mappedaccording to their respective mapping processes. The generated map datacan be transmitted to the mobile device and/or the gaming controllerstation for use with the gaming application.

At 906, two or more craft are launched into the game space. In anembodiment, the craft are launched at a specified launch area such aslaunch area 708 in FIG. 10.

At 908, the craft are located within the game space. Referring tolocating engine 406, active fiducial elements, passive fiducialelements, and/or the craft including a downward-facing camera can beused to triangulate the craft position within the game space. This datais aggregated as position data and transmitted to one or more of thedevice, gaming controller station, or other system components.

At 910, the position data of the craft is integrated into the gamingapplication and displayed on the mobile device. The three-dimensionalposition data is filtered or otherwise synthesized to representtwo-dimensional data. In embodiments, the three-dimensional positiondata can be further integrated into game play features, such as health,power boost, “hiding” locations, and others, depending on the game.

Steps 908 and 910 can be iterated to update the position location of thecraft within the gaming application according to any desired updaterate.

Various embodiments of systems, devices, and methods have been describedherein. These embodiments are given only by way of example and are notintended to limit the scope of the claimed inventions. It should beappreciated, moreover, that the various features of the embodiments thathave been described may be combined in various ways to produce numerousadditional embodiments. Moreover, while various materials, dimensions,shapes, configurations and locations, etc. have been described for usewith disclosed embodiments, others besides those disclosed may beutilized without exceeding the scope of the claimed inventions.

Persons of ordinary skill in the relevant arts will recognize that thesubject matter hereof may comprise fewer features than illustrated inany individual embodiment described above. The embodiments describedherein are not meant to be an exhaustive presentation of the ways inwhich the various features of the subject matter hereof may be combined.Accordingly, the embodiments are not mutually exclusive combinations offeatures; rather, the various embodiments can comprise a combination ofdifferent individual features selected from different individualembodiments, as understood by persons of ordinary skill in the art.Moreover, elements described with respect to one embodiment can beimplemented in other embodiments even when not described in suchembodiments unless otherwise noted.

Although a dependent claim may refer in the claims to a specificcombination with one or more other claims, other embodiments can alsoinclude a combination of the dependent claim with the subject matter ofeach other dependent claim or a combination of one or more features withother dependent or independent claims. Such combinations are proposedherein unless it is stated that a specific combination is not intended.

Any incorporation by reference of documents above is limited such thatno subject matter is incorporated that is contrary to the explicitdisclosure herein. Any incorporation by reference of documents above isfurther limited such that no claims included in the documents areincorporated by reference herein. Any incorporation by reference ofdocuments above is yet further limited such that any definitionsprovided in the documents are not incorporated by reference hereinunless expressly included herein.

For purposes of interpreting the claims, it is expressly intended thatthe provisions of 35 U.S.C. § 112(f) are not to be invoked unless thespecific terms “means for” or “step for” are recited in a claim.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A gaming system integratingthree-dimensional real-world game play and virtual game play, the systemcomprising: at least two remotely-controlled aircraft and at least twocontrollers, each aircraft uniquely paired with and controlled by acorresponding one of the at least two controllers via a radio-frequency(RF) communication protocol implemented between the correspondingcontroller and the remote-control craft that transmits at least craftcontrol communications between a particular pair of a controller and aremotely-controlled aircraft based on a pair identification informationcontained in the RF communication protocol, the RF communicationprotocol further including communication of sensor and positionalinformation; a game space recognition system including: at least twofiducial elements placed relative to one another to define athree-dimensional game space, and a locating engine configured toutilize the at least two fiducial elements and sensor and positionalinformation received via the RF communication protocol to determine arelative position and orientation of each of the at least tworemotely-controlled aircraft within a locally-defined coordinate frameof reference associated with the game space; at least one mobilecomputing device configured to execute a gaming application wherein therelative position of each of the at least two remotely-controlledaircraft is utilized by the gaming application to determine game playassociated with an integrated real and virtual game played among atleast two remotely-controlled aircraft within the three-dimensional gamespace in accordance with a set of rules and parameters for theintegrated real and virtual game, wherein the integrated real andvirtual game defines at least one zone selected from the groupconsisting of: a health zone that, when a first one of the at least tworemotely-controlled aircraft is located within the health zone, providesa relative advantage over a second one of the at least tworemotely-controlled aircraft that is not located within the health zone,and a hiding zone of virtual mountains that, when a first one of the atleast two remotely-controlled aircraft is located within the hidingzone, protects the first aircraft from shots fired by a virtual cannon.2. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the integrated real and virtualgame defines the hiding zone of virtual mountains.
 3. The gaming systemof claim 1, further comprising a plurality of physical markers, whereinthe integrated real and virtual game defines a virtual elementcorresponding to each of the plurality of physical markers.
 4. Thegaming system of claim 1, further comprising: a beacon that emits pulsesthat are received or returned by a selected one of the at least tworemotely-controlled aircraft, and a measurement based on the emittedpulses is used by the locating engine to locate a position of theselected aircraft.
 5. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the at leastone mobile computing device executing the gaming application is asmartphone device physically separate from the at least tworemotely-controlled aircraft.
 6. A gaming system integratingthree-dimensional real-world game play and virtual game play, the systemcomprising: at least two remotely-controlled aircraft and at least twocontrollers, each aircraft uniquely paired with and controlled by acorresponding one of the at least two controllers via a radio-frequency(RF) communication protocol implemented between the correspondingcontroller and the remote-control craft that transmits at least craftcontrol communications between a particular pair of a controller and aremotely-controlled aircraft based on a pair identification informationcontained in the RF communication protocol, the RF communicationprotocol further including communication of sensor and positionalinformation; a game space recognition system including: at least twofiducial elements placed relative to one another to define athree-dimensional game space, and a locating engine configured toutilize the at least two fiducial elements and sensor and positionalinformation received via the RF communication protocol to determine arelative position and orientation of each of the at least tworemotely-controlled aircraft within a locally-defined coordinate frameof reference associated with the game space; at least one mobilecomputing device configured to execute a gaming application wherein therelative position of each of the at least two remotely-controlledaircraft is utilized by the gaming application to determine game playassociated with an integrated real and virtual game played among atleast two remotely-controlled aircraft within the three-dimensional gamespace in accordance with a set of rules and parameters for theintegrated real and virtual game; and a mapping engine, wherein the gamespace recognition system further includes at least one image-acquisitiondevice selected from the group consisting of: a camera on at least oneof the at least two remotely-controlled aircraft, an ultrasonic rangefinder altimeter and a camera on at least one of the at least tworemotely-controlled aircraft, and a 180-degree field-of-view camera oneach of the at least two fiducial elements, wherein theimage-acquisition device is operable to obtain at least one image of theat least two fiducial elements, and wherein the mapping engine isconfigured to determine unique identifiers of the at least two fiducialelements in order to prepare a relative map of positions of the at leasttwo fiducial elements.
 7. The gaming system of claim 6 wherein the gamespace recognition system includes the camera on at least one of the atleast two remotely-controlled aircraft.
 8. The gaming system of claim 6,further comprising: wherein the game space recognition system includesthe ultrasonic range finder altimeter and a camera on at least one ofthe at least two remotely-controlled aircraft, and wherein the mappingengine is further configured to determine an estimated craft height, andangles between the fiducial elements.
 9. A gaming system integratingthree-dimensional real-world game play and virtual game play, the systemcomprising: at least two remotely-controlled aircraft and at least twocontrollers, each aircraft uniquely paired with and controlled by acorresponding one of the at least two controllers via a radio-frequency(RF) communication protocol implemented between the correspondingcontroller and the remote-control craft that transmits at least craftcontrol communications between a particular pair of a controller and aremotely-controlled aircraft based on a pair identification informationcontained in the RF communication protocol, the RF communicationprotocol further including communication of sensor and positionalinformation; a game space recognition system including: at least twofiducial elements placed relative to one another to define athree-dimensional game space, and a locating engine configured toutilize the at least two fiducial elements and sensor and positionalinformation received via the RF communication protocol to determine arelative position and orientation of each of the at least tworemotely-controlled aircraft within a locally-defined coordinate frameof reference associated with the game space; and at least one mobilecomputing device configured to execute a gaming application wherein therelative position of each of the at least two remotely-controlledaircraft is utilized by the gaming application to determine game playassociated with an integrated real and virtual game played among atleast two remotely-controlled aircraft within the three-dimensional gamespace in accordance with a set of rules and parameters for theintegrated real and virtual game, wherein the at least two fiducialelements include a plurality of encoded strings of passive fiducialelements placed to crisscross between corners of the game space.
 10. Amethod of integrating three-dimensional real-world game play and virtualgame play, the method comprising: providing at least one mobilecomputing device, at least two remotely-controlled aircraft and at leasttwo controllers; uniquely pairing each aircraft with a corresponding oneof the at least two controllers via a radio-frequency (RF) communicationprotocol implemented between the corresponding controller and theremote-control craft; transmitting at least craft-control communicationsbetween a particular pair that includes one of the at least twocontrollers and a corresponding one of the at least tworemotely-controlled aircraft based on pair-identification informationcontained in the RF communication protocol, the RF communicationprotocol further including communication of sensor and positionalinformation; defining a three-dimensional game space using at least twofiducial elements placed relative to one another to define the gamespace; associating a locally-defined coordinate frame of reference withthe three-dimensional game space; utilizing the at least two fiducialelements and sensor and positional information received via the RFcommunication protocol to determine a relative position and orientationof each of the at least two remotely-controlled aircraft within thelocally-defined coordinate frame of reference associated with thethree-dimensional game space; executing a gaming application on the atleast one mobile computing device, wherein the relative positions andorientations of each of the at least two remotely-controlled aircraftare utilized by the gaming application to determine game play associatedwith an integrated real and virtual game played among at least tworemotely-controlled aircraft within the three-dimensional game space inaccordance with a set of rules and parameters for the integrated realand virtual game play; and defining at least one zone selected from thegroup consisting of: a hiding zone of virtual mountains that, when afirst one of the at least two remotely-controlled aircraft is locatedwithin the hiding zone, protects the first aircraft from shots fired bya virtual cannon, and a health zone that, when a first one of the atleast two remotely-controlled aircraft is located within the healthzone, provides a relative advantage over a second one of the at leasttwo remotely-controlled aircraft that is not located within the healthzone.
 11. The method of claim 10, further comprising: defining a virtualelement corresponding to each of a plurality of physical markers placedon the game space.
 12. The method of claim 10, further comprising:executing the gaming application on a smartphone device physicallyseparate from the at least two remotely-controlled aircraft.
 13. Amethod of integrating three-dimensional real-world game play and virtualgame play, the method comprising: providing at least one mobilecomputing device, at least two remotely-controlled aircraft and at leasttwo controllers; uniquely pairing each aircraft with a corresponding oneof the at least two controllers via a radio-frequency (RF) communicationprotocol implemented between the corresponding controller and theremote-control craft; transmitting at least craft-control communicationsbetween a particular pair that includes one of the at least twocontrollers and a corresponding one of the at least tworemotely-controlled aircraft based on pair-identification informationcontained in the RF communication protocol, the RF communicationprotocol further including communication of sensor and positionalinformation; defining a three-dimensional game space using at least twofiducial elements placed relative to one another to define the gamespace; associating a locally-defined coordinate frame of reference withthe three-dimensional game space; utilizing the at least two fiducialelements and sensor and positional information received via the RFcommunication protocol to determine a relative position and orientationof each of the at least two remotely-controlled aircraft within thelocally-defined coordinate frame of reference associated with thethree-dimensional game space; executing a gaming application on the atleast one mobile computing device, wherein the relative positions andorientations of each of the at least two remotely-controlled aircraftare utilized by the gaming application to determine game play associatedwith an integrated real and virtual game played among at least tworemotely-controlled aircraft within the three-dimensional game space inaccordance with a set of rules and parameters for the integrated realand virtual game play; obtaining images selected from the groupconsisting of: images from each of the at least two remotely-controlledaircraft, and images from each of the at least two fiducial elements;and using the images to create a map of the game space.
 14. The methodof claim 13, further comprising: obtaining the images from each of theat least two fiducial elements.
 15. The method of claim 13, furthercomprising: obtaining the images from each of the at least tworemotely-controlled aircraft; and obtaining estimated height data fromeach of the at least two remotely-controlled aircraft.
 16. The method ofclaim 13, further comprising: obtaining the images from each of the atleast two remotely-controlled aircraft; and using the images to locatethree-dimensional location and orientation information for each of theat least two remotely-controlled aircraft.
 17. The method of claim 13,further comprising: executing the gaming application on a smartphonedevice physically separate from the at least two remotely-controlledaircraft.
 18. A method of integrating three-dimensional real-world gameplay and virtual game play, the method comprising: providing at leastone mobile computing device, at least two remotely-controlled aircraftand at least two controllers; uniquely pairing each aircraft with acorresponding one of the at least two controllers via a radio-frequency(RF) communication protocol implemented between the correspondingcontroller and the remote-control craft; transmitting at leastcraft-control communications between a particular pair that includes oneof the at least two controllers and a corresponding one of the at leasttwo remotely-controlled aircraft based on pair-identificationinformation contained in the RF communication protocol, the RFcommunication protocol further including communication of sensor andpositional information; defining a three-dimensional game space using atleast two fiducial elements placed relative to one another to define thegame space; associating a locally-defined coordinate frame of referencewith the three-dimensional game space; utilizing the at least twofiducial elements and sensor and positional information received via theRF communication protocol to determine a relative position andorientation of each of the at least two remotely-controlled aircraftwithin the locally-defined coordinate frame of reference associated withthe three-dimensional game space; executing a gaming application on theat least one mobile computing device, wherein the relative positions andorientations of each of the at least two remotely-controlled aircraftare utilized by the gaming application to determine game play associatedwith an integrated real and virtual game played among at least tworemotely-controlled aircraft within the three-dimensional game space inaccordance with a set of rules and parameters for the integrated realand virtual game play; and obtaining magnetic and gravitational vectorsfrom each respective one of the at least two remotely-controlledaircraft to provide an absolute reference frame to estimate athree-dimensional orientation of the respective aircraft.